Bradley: Adam Warren beaten up in Yankees debut but even getting to majors was difficult trip

Jim McIsaac/Getty ImagesAdam Warren had a difficult night in his major league debut.

NEW YORK — The flight was set to leave Raleigh-Durham Airport Friday at 3 p.m., and while the itinerary was thrown together at the last minute, University of North Carolina baseball coach Mike Fox didn’t seem to care a bit. As long as he was in Yankee Stadium to see the first pitch of Adam Warren’s major-league career, the coach said the hectic trek would be worth it.

“I wouldn’t miss it for the world,” Fox said, just minutes before heading to the airport to catch his flight. “Adam was, basically, one of the most perfect players that you ever get to coach. One of those kids who never causes you any problems, whatsoever.”

Who knows, maybe the coach also had a premonition that future Yankee starts might be hard to come by for Warren, the 24-year-old right-hander who pitched for the Yankees last night in place of the injured CC Sabathia. Never a top prospect or a guy with an electric array of pitches, Warren has been categorized by Yankee general manager Brian Cashman as a possible “back-end of the rotation” kind of pitcher.”

“It’s his first start,” said manager Joe Girardi. “So you try not to form too much of an opinion. But he just didn’t look like he located as well as I’ve seen him locate. That can happen.”

Warren was done after just 2⅓ innings, leaving the mound to the rare polite applause Yankee fans normally reserve for a guy they feel sorry for. The White Sox beat him up so badly you have to wonder if he’ll get the ball again while Sabathia is out. Had Warren’s performance been even workmanlike, he’d have stood a chance. But it was not even that.

Obviously, with both Sabathia and Andy Pettitte on the DL, the Yankees pitching depth will be challenged. As much as the Yankees can roll up big offensive numbers, and did so again last night, the main reason for their June surge has been stellar starting pitching. It now looks like David Phelps, who took the loss in relief last night, could be used as a starter Wednesday. It’s still anyone’s guess who’s going to fill the void that’s been left.

“I have to see what happens tomorrow,” Girardi said when asked if Warren would get another start. “Then we’ll worry about our rotation moving forward.”

Not a ringing endorsement, but truth be told, Warren has not even lit up Triple A. Not this year, as he’s gone 5-5 with a 3.86 ERA in 15 starts. And not last year, when he went 6-8 with a 3.60 in 27 starts. He has struck out only 170 in 238 innings at Triple A and gives up more than a hit per inning. Warren was never touted as one of the organization’s top pitching prospects. He’s always been more of an outlier. Even in college.

When Fox brought Warren to UNC out of North Carolina’s New Bern High School in 2006, and watched him walk 13 batters in his first 24 innings, the veteran coach admitted he lost a good deal of faith in him. And wondered if he’d ever contribute to a staff loaded with good arms.

“We told him he was soft,” Fox recalled. “And I’d say he took objection with that.”

Over his next three seasons in Chapel Hill, though he was pitching alongside a slew of future first-round picks — including current big-leaguers Andrew Miller, Daniel Bard, Alex White, Andrew Carignan and Mets top prospect Matt Harvey — Warren proved his coach wrong. Warren would finish his college career with a 32-4 record, the best winning percentage in UNC history. He won 19 games in a row at one point.

“Did I think I’d ever see him pitch in the big leagues?” Fox asked. “That’s a hard question. But it couldn’t be happening to a better kid. I know that sounds so corny, but if ever a kid deserved a chance to pitch in the big leagues, it’s Adam Warren. He’s one of those kids who’s never cared if he’s the No. 1, 2 or 3 starter. Does it surprise me that he’s made it? No. Because he’s very disciplined, and very goal-oriented.”

And that’s why Fox said he wouldn’t think of missing Warren’s major-league debut. When a kid can go from a rarely used, “soft” freshman to one of the greatest winners in the history of a school’s baseball program, and a contributor to a team that made four consecutive trips to the College World Series, a coach will tend to appreciate that.

“Adam proved he wasn’t going to let anything, or anybody get in his way, said Fox. ”He’s the kind of under-the-radar story that is so great. He deserves this opportunity.“

An obviously disappointed Warren regretted he didn’t make more of his chance, but was still thankful that his coach, and members of his family, made the trip to see his first start.

“It was nice of Coach to be here,” Warren said. “Pretty special. He played a big part in my being here. It’s frustrating. I take pride in my ability to take a team deep into a game, and that wasn’t the case tonight. I’m just going to try and learn from it, and move on.”